Short Stories
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forthcoming:
“All Lovers Burn at the End of the World.” Short story collection from ELJ Editions in November 2024.
“What Bones Carry.” Best MicroFictions 2023.
“Better Home and Gardens.” Shenandoah Literary.
“A Brightly-Colored Curse, Opened in Wonder.” Cutbow Quarterly.
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“Universe in a Jar.” Citron Review. April 2, 2023. https://citronreview.com/2023/04/02/a-universe-in-a-jar/
Six Ball-jar terrariums line Minnie’s window sash, growing, raining, breathing according to the geography of her life. (literary)
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“The Fertility of Ash”. Necessary Fiction. January 11, 2023. http://necessaryfiction.com/stories/the-fertility-of-ash/
Laney’s dull pencil pushed deeply into the spiral pad, pages warped with the sweat of her hands. She could fill in the rest later, after the burning. (literary)
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“Crimson Redux”. Wyldblood Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine Issue 10. Autumn 2022. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1914417119/ref=ox_sc_act_image_2?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
Psychic Jennie does her best to fly under the radar so as not to attract the attention of the wrong kind of people. She works with what the riverbanks can provide, until her daughter is kidnapped. And then she sees only red. (steampunk, fantasy)
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“What Bones Carry”. Whale Road Review Vol. 28. Fall 2022. http://www.whaleroadreview.com/miller-4/
Equations slipped away, into a permanent bone density. The skeleton remembered one, about orbital distance, though that had less to do with his eye sockets and more to do with planets. In the quiet of calcium space, it didn’t seem an important distinction. It was all space, they were all planets. (literary)
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“The Road to Hell is Paved with 70’s cars and an All-Night Applebees”. Bullshit Anthology. Bullshit Lit. August 22, 2022. https://www.bullshitlit.com/bsantho
Stuck in Hell and traffic, Vinnie only has one option for dinner. (humor, spec fic)
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“Afterbirth.” TL;DR Press. Mosaic. August 2022. https://tldrpress.org/books/mosaic/
A wasting disease’s only cure is in a miracle fruit among the rows of the nunnery orchard. Lori is told the last thing she will lose before she dies is hope. (dark fantasy)
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“The Next, Best Disaster”. X-Ray Literary. July 10, 2022. https://xraylitmag.com/the-next-best-disaster-by-janna-miller/fiction/
The rabid snails were completely gone. We would get our deposit back. Probably. (humor, literary)
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“Countess Herzinga’s Alchemy”. Janus Literary. June 30, 2022. https://www.janusliterary.com/2022/06/29/janna-miller-countess-herzingas-alchemy/
Countess Herzinga was the first to study the transmutable properties of eggshells as applied to light and sound. Her early laboratory, just long rows of heat lamps and fresh, twiggy nests. (fantasy)
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“No Matter How Much Time Has Passed, Some Houses Don’t Die”. Janus Literary. June 30, 2022.https://www.janusliterary.com/2022/06/29/janna-miller-no-matter-how-much-time-has-passed-some-houses-dont-die/
Nazi ghost houses roam the countryside, setting up bars and brothels. Come in, come in, they say. You do not know us, you do not remember, we have been here before. This door your grandmother passed through. Your great uncle. We have good beer. (polsat, literary)
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“Atmospheric Variations”. FlashFlood. June 18, 2022 http://flashfloodjournal.blogspot.com/2022/06/atmospheric-variations-by-janna-miller.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
Her mother never touched the ground, so Su didn’t either. Her toes splayed on rooftops and gables, curled around hanging vines and gutters. (speculative, literary)
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“The Sternum Ties it All Together”. Molotov Cocktail. June 15, 2022 https://themolotovcocktail.com/vol-13/vol-13-issue-1/sternum/
My teeth wandered off their tether in the night, bringing back the taste of calcium bones and morning dew. (horror)
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“As Fast as She Can”. Gastropoda. June 5, 2022 https://gastropodalitmag.wixsite.com/main/post/as-fast-as-she-can-by-janna-miller
Cars then and now. Also how fast a baby-blue flower-painted 1979 Pontiac Bonneville can go along Racetrack Road in the dark. (creative non-fiction)
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“Folds Within Folds”. Atlas and Alice. May 23, 2022 https://atlasandalice.com/2022/05/23/fiction-from-janna-miller/
Under Edy’s hands, five seconds of life play out in folded paper. A moving menagerie of starts and sudden stops between origami creases. (speculative, literary)
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“Remains of Firecracker Wrappers, Bird Graves, and You”. Scissors and Spackle. January 2022. Issue 17. https://scissorsandspackle.net/remains-of-firecracker-wrappers-bird-graves-and-you/
Digging down, a tableau opens: firecracker wrappers, potato ghosts, kingsnakes, and civilizations. Even near the magma, one thing is missing. (literary)
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“Pocket Sharps”. Cheap Pop. November 23, 2021. http://www.cheappoplit.com/home/janna-miller
The blade is shiny and was your mother’s. You draw its steel across a found branch the same way she did, sitting at the edge of the flames, long curls of wood falling to your feet. (literary)
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“St. Winston’s Refuge for Extinct Animals”. Climate Liberated Anthology. Stories to Change the World Publishing. Future Folklore Climate Fiction Contest. October, 2021. Paperback: https://stcwpublishing.com/shop/p/climate-liberated-paperback PDF: https://stcwpublishing.com/shop/p/climate-liberated-pdf
Beavers arrive at St. Winston’s island ahead of schedule, throwing off the balance of the already extinct animals. And a poker game. (spec fic, cli-fi)
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“The Larvae of Tree-Dwelling Species Stay Where They Hatch”. Smokelong Quarterly. September 27, 2021. https://www.smokelong.com/the-larvae-of-tree-dwelling-species-stay-where-they-hatch/
After Moxie’s birthday party, a car is overrun with a new species of Luna Moth. (literary, speculative)
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“The Last Spider Lilies of Chester County”. National Flash Flood Day 2021. June 25, 2021. http://flashfloodjournal.blogspot.com/2021/06/the-last-spider-lilies-of-chester.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
Essie and her mother consider the lilies on their annual pilgrimage along the water. The lilies change yearly, as does the distance between mother and daughter. (realistic fiction, literary)
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“Anti-Gravity and the Punishment of Clever Girls”. Daily Science Fiction. April 15, 2021. https://dailysciencefiction.com/science-fiction/space-travel/janna-miller/anti-gravity-and-the-punishment-of-clever-girls
Spinning in the cold of space, a woman reflects on the punishment of clever girls. (science fiction/fairy tale)
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“Bart’s Red Solo Morning”. Daily Drunk. January 7, 2021. https://dailydrunkmag.com/2021/01/07/barts-red-solo-morning/
Bart has his eye on a red Solo cup that will grant him free beer for a year. All he needs to do is row faster than Janet, who is by far the better athlete. And just as determined. (comedy)
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“Snapdragons Come Back Every Year”. F(r)iction Magazine (Duly Noted). October 15th, 2020. https://frictionlit.org/snapdragons-come-back-every-year/
The couch blossomed on Thursday, right after the afternoon rains. Maxine dismisses it at first, thinking only that the flowers match her mock Turkish rug. When her doors and window seal with sap, she realizes her houseplants are plotting something. (weird/dark comedy)
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“Tea and the Weight of Spirits”. Twist in Time Literary Magazine. Issue 9. July 1, 2020. https://twistintimemag.com/tea-and-the-weight-of-spirits-by-janna-miller/
During the day, Katsu walks rows of tea bushes, plucking new growth to dry in woven baskets. At night, he looks to his roof for the first spirit to descend. (historical fiction/ fantasy)
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“After Midnight at the Dreamer’s Charity Ball”. Endless Pictures Anthology. TL;DR Press. June 29, 2020. 1000 Word Herd Flash Fiction Competition. https://www.amazon.com/Endless-Pictures-Word-Competition-Winners-ebook/dp/B08BWN7YKW/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=tl%3Bdr+press&qid=1593399561&s=digital-text&sr=1-1
Only once a month are the Dreamers gathered to the Charity Ball, a place where they can eat acorn nut pastries, dance under the moonlight with a fully feathered orchestra, and reminisce about the taste of strawberries. (fantasy)
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“Entanglement Issues in Magical Workplace Accidents”. Andromeda Spaceways. Issue 78. March 2020. https://andromedaspaceways.com/product/asm-78/
While Millicent is cleaning up in the library one evening, she unwittingly activates a magical spell of possession. Only through some intense research and self study does she figure out how she can escape to tender her resignation. (fantasy, comedy)
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“Crop Rotation”. Published by Meow Meow Pow Pow. 3/27/20 https://www.meowmeowpowpowlit.com/recent/crop-rotation-by-janna-miller
A child’s job is to harvest the root vegetables, which are grown in the oldest bones. She avoids the corn and is, of course, the most careful of teeth. (fantasy, dark literary fiction)
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“Existential Dance Revolution” published in Funny Pearls 3/10/20
An after hours office party encounters a different sort of bar game, one with questions that are a little bit more difficult than usual to answer. (humor)
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“Ghosts of Tooth and Claw” published in 72 Hours of Insanity, Vol. 7 by The Writer’s Workout. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B083KLLGQ4/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0
The beasts are safely contained within cave walls if the old rituals are followed and the sacred ashes are worn. When Ilia accidentally releases them with a careless thought, only she can see the old blood beneath toothy smiles. (fantasy)
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“When Johnny Comes Marching Home” published in 72 Hours of Insanity, Vol. 7 by The Writer’s Workout. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B083KLLGQ4/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0
Johnny and the Sergeant find themselves at a wall they must cross to fight a war that seems to have no end. After the zamboni machine clears the battlefield of ashes, it gets eerily quiet. (political satire)
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“Three Small Sacrifices” published in the December issue of Luna Station Quarterly. Issue number 40 has a theme of potions and poisons. http://lunastationquarterly.com/issue/issue-040/ . https://www.amazon.com/dp/1949077136 .
http://lunastationquarterly.com/story/three-small-sacrifices/
They find her when they need her, and are willing to pay for their small sins and revenges. As the witch knows, there are some requests that require a very high price indeed. Deep in the swamp, curses and blessings often look the same. (dark fairytale, fantasy)
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“Daemon Fenroy” published in the Summer 2019 anthology WSOFIT by Devil’s Party Press https://devilspartypress.com . https://www.amazon.com/What-Sort-Fuckery-Dianne-Pearce/dp/0999655884/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=what+sort+of+fuckery&qid=1575731552&sr=8-1
Fenroy is considered dangerous. Chained in the dungeon and fed only library scraps, no one is allowed to look him directly in the eyes, for fear of manipulation. Those that care for him, and others like him, are also somewhat unusual, and may prove to be even more destructive than those that are bound. (fantasy, comedy, political satire)
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“Before the River” (published as “Trees”), July 2019. Published in Beautiful Truth: A Gathering of Voices from Charlotte, NC by Charlotte Lit
A creative non-fiction piece that comments on growing up in North Florida and the tree that connects a childhood to the present. (CNF)
https://www.charlottelit.org/beautifultruth/
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“Noelaini’s Tether” June 2019 Issue A Drop of Water, a Flood of Dreams Published by Enchanted Conversations: Fairytales, Folktales, and Myths
As the daughter of the North Wind and a cloud nymph, Noelaini is used to being blown around. More grounded than her sisters, she must navigate with a rope tied around her waist, trying to balance the difference between flying and falling. (fairy tale, fantasy)
https://enchantedconversationmag.blogspot.com/2019/06/noelanis-tether-by-janna-miller.html
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“Running Stitches” published on June 8, 2019 by The Drabble
100 word micro-fiction that follows the life of a woman who pulls together her life in a gathering of days, one memorable piece after the other. (literary)
https://thedrabble.wordpress.com/2019/06/08/running-stitches/?c=16004#comment-16004
Poetry
“Snow Queen in Exile” . Published in Winter Zine by Gnashing Teeth Publishing. Limited Edition (50 copies, hand painted/stitched). January 2021. https://gnashingteethpublishing.com/winter-zine/
Vania plans to melt into the paper whites in the spring.
Contests/Awards
February 18, 2023. Accepted into Best MicroFiction, 2023 for the story, “What Bones Carry.” https://www.bestmicrofiction.com/index.html
December 1, 2002. Nominated for Best MicroFiction for the story, “What Bones Carry.” (Whale Road Review, Fall 2002 issue). http://www.whaleroadreview.com/about/nominations/
December 1, 2022. Nominated for Best MicroFiction for the story, “No Matter How Much Time Has Passed, Some Houses Don’t Die.” (Janus Literary Issue 8). https://twitter.com/JanusLiterary/status/1598422892722675712
June 28, 2022. TL;DR 1000 Word Herd Flash Fiction Competition. Seventh Place for, “Afterbirth”. Publication forthcoming. https://tldrpress.org/2022/06/09/announcing-the-tldr-press-1000-word-herd-flash-fiction-2022-competition-winners/?fbclid=IwAR2zVsPbSIJkndEHuf4lpEtQQQsaqs0wBxeMeC8N_qfzGhP0Y56i1k5JVKU
November 21, 2021. Nominated for Best MicroFiction for the story, “The Larvae of Tree-Dwelling Species Stay Where They Hatch” (SmokeLong Quarterly, September 2021) https://twitter.com/SmokeLong/status/1462548564853227520
October 29, 2021. Honorable Mention in Molotov Cocktail’s Flash Monster Contest for the story, “The Sternum Ties it All Together”. https://themolotovcocktail.com/2021/10/29/flash-monster-2021-results/
September 16, 2021 “St. Winston’s Refuge for Extinct Animals” chosen as a Special Selection in the Future Folklore Contest with STCW Publishing. The anthology will be released in September 2021. https://stcwpublishing.com/shop/p/climate-liberated-pdf
May 24, 2021 Smokelong Quarterly Award for Microfiction. Longlisted for the story “House Rules for After the Polar Shift”. http://www.smokelong.com/the-smokelong-grand-micro-contest-long-list/
January 12, 2021 Nomination for Best Small Fictions for the story “Crop Rotation” (Meow Meow Pow Pow March, 2020). https://twitter.com/meowmeowpowpow/status/1349115144719245312/photo/1
June 1, 2020 Smokelong Quarterly Award for Flash Fiction. Longlisted for the story, “The Fertility of Ash”. http://www.smokelong.com/the-smokelong-quarterly-award-for-flash-fiction-long-list/
May 30, 2020 TL;DR 1000 Word Herd Flash Fiction Competition. Top 20 placement for the story, “After Midnight at the Dreamer’s Charity Ball”. http://tldrpress.org/index.php/2020/05/19/1kwhc-winners/
November 29, 2019 YeahWrite SuperChallenge #14. Final Round. Honorable Mention for the short story “Just Like She Was”. https://yeahwrite.me/super-challenge-14-results-round-3/
October 21, 2019 Literary Taxidermy Contest. Honorable Mention for the short story “Under the Grey”. https://literarytaxidermy.com/
October 19, 2019 Writer’s Workout Contest. Overall Third Place Winner. https://millersminusculemystories.com/2019/10/19/3rd-place-overall-writers-workout-games/
October 19, 2019 Writer’s Workout Contest. Event 5 (Bizarre Bazaar). First place for the short story “Ghosts of Tooth and Claw”.
October 11, 2019 Writer’s Workout Contest. Event 4 (Dialog Only). First place for the short story “When Johnny Comes Marching Home.”
September 22, 2019 Shortlisted for the poem “Sonnet for the Dreamers Craving Sleep” in Molotov Cocktails Shadow Award Contest. Shadow Award 2019 results!
May 15, 2019 Shortlisted for Molotov Cocktail’s Urban Flash contest for the short story “Crow-Boy”. Flash Legend results!
Novels
Ivy in the Age of Falling Ash
Way off the grid and nestled deep in the Blue Ridge Mountains is Fairhope Farms, a bed and breakfast that Ivy’s family has owned for generations. Surrounded by acres of old growth forest and rich, green glens, her hidden land has always attracted its share of refugees – animal and human alike. Now more than ever, it seems to be a sanctuary for the lost, the weary, and the dispossessed.
While she cares for her borders, Ivy’s connection to the land runs deeper than she realizes. She grows apples and cans vegetables. She walks barefoot to greet the morning sun. She works deep into the night, and sees shadows that she struggles to understand.
She has forgotten there is someone else that lives under the canopy of the dense forest as a caretaker of a different nature. That there is a hidden room filled with dials and gauges she has never been shown.
And somewhere, deep beneath the rich earth of Fairhope, is a secret that lies outside just one human lifetime. It is measured in seasons and roots and in the connections of trees. It is part of a plan of ages to keep alive a vibrant ember in a dying world.
If only Ivy could remember.
Inspired by Peter Wohlleben’s The Hidden Life of Trees, this eco-fiction novel is a cross between Ursula K LeGuin’s Always Coming Home and Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. It is a read that reinforces the importance of our human relationships, our environment, and the powerful interconnected nature of all living things.
This novel is currently open for agent interest.
Miller's Minuscule Mystories 